Microsoft News

Top Story: Microsoft Sets Hiring and Spending Freeze Microsoft Corp employees received a note informing them of a hiring and spending freeze. The move to freeze spending is a sign that the credit and financial crises is taking a toll on the information technology sector. The recent financial and credit crises are now impacting the information technology sector. Several business technology stocks were downgraded this week. Some financial analysts say that the financial crisis is causing a credit crunch that will likely slow IT spending by both consumers and business technology companies.

Microsoft news articles. Read the latest Microsoft articles on Windows 7, Vista, Windows XP and Internet Explorer. Stories also include Windows Mobile platform and its current release. Business Technology News Windows 7 Releases to PDC Attendees Next Month Microsoft will release Windows 7 to attendees at next month's Professional Developers Conference. The operating system will be delivered onto a 160 GB external USB hard drive. There is still no official word when Beta 1 of Windows 7 will be shipped. Microsoft Acquires Ciao to Launch E-shopping Search Microsoft purchased Ciao for $486 million in an effort to use its e-commerce Internet search business. Ciao is a price comparison Web site based in London. Microsoft settles Alcatel Lucent patent suit Microsoft paid Alcatel Lucent $367 million for violating two patents related to the user interface in its software. Microsoft, IBM Profits Soar While the economy is sagging, technology giants Microsoft and IBM reported double-digit growth in quarterly revenue and profits. Microsoft Talks Partnership With AOL Microsoft has been holding talks with AOL as potential media partners after merger negotiations ended with Yahoo. Microsoft Windows Mobile to Get Music Upgrade Microsoft plans to upgrade its music capabilities on Windows Mobile. Microsoft Changes Live Search Microsoft plans to fix Live Search branding by making it more competitive with Google. Windows 7 likely to become Vista clone Windows 7 uses Vista kernel with similar requirements. Windows Mobile Cell Phones to Soar Microsoft expects Windows Mobile software for cell phones to grow at least 50 percent per year in 2008 and 2009. Windows XP Remains Most Popular OS Windows XP set to expire June 30. Microsoft Drops Book Search Project Microsoft's book search started in December 2006 after Google started a similar program with libraries. GameStop Drops Zune The Microsoft Zune media player has been discontinued at all GameStop videogame stores. Microsoft Adopts ODF Format The European Commission said it will question a decision by Microsoft to make its Office software program compatible with rival ODF. Microsoft Messenger for Mac 7 Released Microsoft Messenger for Mac 7 has been released for both personal and corporate use. The Corporate version includes multi-party audio and video use. Windows XP SP3 Delayed Citing RMS Issues Windows XP SP3 has been delayed due to Microsoft Dynamics RMS which is a management software designed for small and medium businesses. Microsoft IIS Under SQL Injection Cyber Attack Over 500,000 Microsoft IIS Web servers are infected less than a day by a flood of SQL injections, leaving pages with malicious iFrames. Microsoft Yahoo Showdown Next Week Microsoft is considering launching a hostile bid for Yahoo as early as next week if the Internet search engine company does not begin talks soon. Windows XP May Get Further Extension Windows XP users might get their wish as Microsoft may reconsider its decision to pull the operating system from store shelves on June 30. Windows Vista SP1 Deployed Automatically Windows Vista SP1 is now being deployed by Microsoft's auto-update service which fixes many problems users have had with the operating system. Microsoft Live Mesh Synchronizes Devices Microsoft Live Mesh is a new service that can synchronize devices such as PCs, Macs, mobile cell phones or even printers. Microsoft Study Unveils Web Attacks Rising Microsoft saw the number of Trojan download programs it removed from Windows machines jump by 300 percent. Windows XP SP3 Released to Manufacturing Channels Microsoft Windows XP SP3 will release on April 29 and distribution via auto updates for consumers in early summer. Vista SP1 Users Report Broken USB Devices Vista SP1 is good news for Microsoft, but some users are reporting breaks with USB devices such as mice and flash drives. Microsoft Albany Targets Home Office Users The Albany plug-in will give customers the ability to store and share documents online such as Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint applications found in the commercial version of Office. Windows XP SP3 Coming April 29 Windows XP SP3 is a huge update and will feature more than 1,000 hot fixes and patches that have been issued in the past three years, as well as at least four new features, some of which will be ports of Vista tools. Windows XP Users Want Extension, Not Vista Windows XP operating system will be pulled from shelves on June 30, but users can't embrace Vista. Microsoft Proposes Tiered Online Privacy Microsoft proposes a tiered approach to protecting the privacy of users targeted by online advertisers. Windows Vista Doomed, says Gartner According to Gartner analysts, Microsoft's Windows Vista is in danger of collapsing. Microsoft Pays $367 Million To Alcatel Lucent Microsoft had violated two Alcatel Lucent patents related to the user interface in its software. Microsoft Patches Windows Vista, XP, Office, IE Microsoft will issue eight security updates next week, five are tagged critical, to patch Windows Vista, XP, Office, Server 2008 and Internet Explorer.

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This Microsoft News page offers stories written by our editorial staff. The Editor for this page is Bill Waters. The Managing Editor is Mary Couchman. News correspondents are Sara Smith, Jennifer Hong, John Lester, Michael Stevens and Steve Chu. Stories include updates on Windows, Office products and Server.